Whack-A-Mole season for senior Dems

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Politico:




By ALEX ISENSTADT | 10/12/10 7:12 PM EDT Updated: 10/12/10 7:25 PM EDT

Every two years, at about this time, whispers of unexpectedly imperiled incumbents seem to surface out of nowhere. While the hearsay rarely ever pans out, that doesn’t stop the time-honored tradition of rumor mongering about seemingly safe or senior incumbents on the verge of defeat against unheralded challengers.

In a normal election year, less than a handful of members makes the October-shocker gossip circuit. In this election homestretch, however, a new name shows up on the radar nearly every day.

The list of allegedly endangered incumbents reads like a roster of some of the most powerful Democrats in the House: Michigan Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of the chamber; Minnesota Rep. Jim Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; and Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.